The University Curriculum

The University curriculum is composed of a diverse set of academic offerings and requirements, each designed to build high-quality
learning environments both in and outside of the classroom.

Curricular development and improvement, a continuous responsibility of the University's faculty, is the primary function of
the Academic Affairs sector administered by the Office of the Provost.

Undergraduate Education

A baccalaureate education exposes students to a diverse array of academic areas. Our undergraduate program includes requirements
and electives to enhance intellectual capabilities and stimulate intellectual curiosity.

In addition to completing course work for a specific major, students must complete an extensive general education program
to sharpen writing, speaking, computation, and critical thinking skills needed to ensure knowledge of the sciences, humanities,
fine arts, and social sciences-the basic subject areas upon which all academic endeavors are based. Improved understanding
of ethnic minorities, broader knowledge of non-western cultures, and an understanding of United States history, constitution,
and American ideals are further goals of the undergraduate education program. This diverse curriculum is designed to stimulate
a lifelong interest in learning.

Graduate Education

Built on the foundation of the baccalaureate, graduate education offers the master's degree to students who successfully complete
a program of advanced study, scholarly investigation, and research in a specific academic field. While the acquisition of
knowledge is a major task of undergraduate education, the utilization, synthesis, and advancement of knowledge are the major
goals of graduate study.

Through a coherent pattern of courses, graduate students develop research methods appropriate to their discipline and culminate
their studies with a thesis, project, or comprehensive examination. Students who have earned the master's degree have acquired
sufficient mastery of a discipline for further study in a doctoral program and/or for significant professional careers in
industry, education, research, government, or private organizations.

The Colleges, Schools, and Departments

Within Academic Affairs, subject disciplines are grouped into various administrative units based on commonality of the curriculum.
There are seven colleges, each representing a major segment of the academic community and administered by a dean; and two
interdisciplinary units: Undergraduate Education and the School of Graduate, International, and Interdisciplinary Studies.
Within the colleges are individual departments that define the specific disciplines and several schools that either link together
departments (Schools of the Arts, Communication, Education, and Engineering) or operate in lieu of a department (Schools of
Nursing and Agriculture).

The colleges of the University are organized into two broad categories: liberal arts and sciences, and professional studies.
In the following information, these two categories are used to define the colleges, schools, and departments that comprise
the administrative structure of Academic Affairs.

The Colleges of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Liberal arts courses constitute the very heart of a university education. Historically, universities have grown up around
the liberal arts-the arts and humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. These disciplines provide a foundation
learning experience for all college students, whatever their interests or career aspirations.

The General Education program draws nearly its entire curriculum from the liberal arts, and many professional programs depend
heavily on liberal arts prerequisites for their own majors. Liberal arts majors offer a solid education for responsible contributions
to a complex, modern world; equip students to reason, write, and communicate well; immerse them in moral and humane sensibilities;
and bring them into intelligent and thoughtful contact with their physical and social worlds and with themselves. While many
liberal arts majors lead to specific careers, all provide an education which promises value throughout life.

The College of Behavioral and Social Sciences

Departments and programs in Anthropology, Child Development, Economics, Geography and Planning, Health and Community Services,
Political Science, Psychology, Social Science, Sociology, and Social Work.

The College of Humanities and Fine Arts

The School of the Arts with departments in Art and Art History, Music, and Theatre Arts. Additional programs and departments
in American Studies, English, English as a Foreign Language, History, Humanities, Foreign Languages and Literatures, Philosophy,
and Religious Studies.

The College of Natural Sciences

The School of Nursing. Additional departments and programs in Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Geosciences, Mathematics and
Statistics, Microbiology, Nutrition and Food Science, and Physics.

The Colleges of Professional Studies

The professional colleges within the University provide a career emphasis built upon a strong liberal arts background. The
courses of study include Agriculture, Business, Communication, Education, Engineering, Computer Science, and Construction
Management. Students may select career options from a variety of specialties.

The professional programs emphasize concepts fundamental to both current and future practice in the selected field. Global
acculturation taking place in all fields and rapid development of economic, managerial, and technological processes require
professional studies to provide a lifelong learning approach.

The programs stress development of communication and analytical skills in preparation for careers in corporations, government
agencies, or private practice. Education in the professional fields beyond graduation continues to be a hallmark of our modern
society; our professional studies curriculum provides a broadly based program of study that places a premium upon the ability
for future growth of the individual and an understanding of the place of the professional in a civilized and complex world.

The College of Business

The College of Communication and Education

The School of Communication includes Departments of Communication Arts and Sciences, Communication Design, and Journalism,
and programs in Graphic Design, Information Systems, Instructional Technology, Media Arts, Speech Pathology and Audiology,
News-Editorial, Public Relations, Organizational and Speech Communications.

The School of Education, includes Teacher Education, Bilingual Education, Mini-Corps, Upward Bound, and the Teacher Recruitment
Project and the Departments of Education and Professional Studies in Education. The College also includes the Departments
of Physical Education and Exercise Science, and Recreation and Parks Management, and the Liberal Studies Program.

The College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Construction Management

Interdisciplinary programs use curriculum and faculty from numerous colleges and disciplinesand do not logically fit within
any single academic area. These include:

The School of Graduate, International, and Interdisciplinary Studies

The School's Office of Graduate Studies administers post-baccalaureate programs, including master's degrees and options in
thirty-six disciplinary programs and the Master of Arts or Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. The school also administers
international academic programs and international student services, Leadership Studies, Multicultural and Gender Studies,
Special Major, and Experiential Education and Internship Office.

In conjunction with the colleges, schools, and departments, the Graduate School encourages all forms of postbaccalaureate
education and the production, dissemination, and application of new knowledge. Further, the Graduate School administers programs
in African Studies, Asian Studies, European Studies, Latin American Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, and Self-Instruction
Languages, as well as administration of exchange programs.

Special Undergraduate Programs and Research

Under the auspices of the Office of the Provost, the following programs can be found: General Education, General Education
Courselink, General Studies Thematic, and University Honors. The Provost also oversees sponsored projects, grants, and contract
activities which facilitate faculty development, faculty and student research, scholarship and creative activity.